Tall Dark Stranger

by Buck Owens & His Buckaroos, Buck Owens

Overview

Tall Dark Stranger found Buck Owens returning to the Billboard's Country Album Top Ten after the hiccup of I've Got You on My Mind Again. The resurgence is due in part to the smash success of the fuzz-drenched non-LP single "Who's Gonna Mow Your Grass" which hit number one early in 1969, the same position the galloping title track of Tall Dark Stranger achieved later that year. Owens' streak was revived commercially and, as an album, Tall Dark Stranger creatively bettered I've Got You on My Mind Again, too, even if it similarly expanded the Buckaroos' signature Bakersfield sound in unexpected ways. Where I've Got You on My Mind Again was layered in vocal harmonies, there are strings draped throughout Tall Dark Stranger, sometimes adding sweetness but just as often lending a sense of drama to the proceedings. These lush strings, sometimes accompanied by horns, align Tall Dark Stranger with the progressive elements in mainstream country at the dawn of the 1970s, a move that suits Owens quite well. He's a sharp songwriter and vocalist, while the the Buckaroos remain a muscular, versatile band, so they sound good in these burnished surroundings. Tall Dark Stranger expands the Buckaroos formula just enough to suggest that the 1970s would be as fruitful as the 1960s for Owens and the Buckaroos. Instead of opening a new chapter, though, this closed the door on Owens' peak, a transition that's impossible to view outside of the prism of Hee Haw, as this was the last album he completed before starring in that variety show smash. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	08/06/2021
Label:	Omnivore
UPC:	0810075110326

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Buck Owens   Primary Artist,Guitar,Vocals
Buck Owens & His Buckaroos   Primary Artist
Don Rich   Guitar
Earl Poole Ball   Piano,Harpsichord
Anita Kerr   Choir/Chorus
Bob Morris   Bass
Billy Wright   Violin
Jerry Wiggins   Drums,Tambourine
Susan Raye   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Billy Armstrong   Violin
The Jordanaires   Choir/Chorus
Chuck Adnell   Violin
Tom Brumley   Guitar (Steel)
Doyle Holly   Guitar
Red Wooten   Bass
Jelly Sanders   Guitar
Jim Hager   Vocals (Background)
Walter Rower   Cello
Fiddlin' Kate Warren   Violin
Hixon Boranian   Violin
Hyman Davidson   Viola
Al Bruneau   Guitar

Technical Credits

Doyle Holly   Group Member,Composer
Greg Allen   Design,Art Direction
Don Rich   Composer,Group Member
Bob Morris   Group Member
Cheryl Pawelski   Reissue Producer
Jerry Wiggins   Group Member
Mike Settle   Composer
Tom Brumley   Group Member
Joy Graves   Project Assistant
Buck Owens   Composer,Group Member
Lee Lodyga   Project Assistant
Michael Graves   Mastering
Gene Price   Composer
Randy Poe   Liner Notes
Audrey Bilger   Project Assistant
Dutch Cramblitt   Project Assistant
Ken Nelson   Producer
Brad Rosenberger   Project Assistant